The top US defense contractor Lockheed Martin has unveiled a
new weapons rack meant to increase the internal air-to-air
missile carrying capacity of the F-35.

The new weapons rack - Sidekick - is designed to allow the
fifth-generation fighters to carry an additional AIM-120 Amraam
in each of its two internal weapons bays, increasing the weapons
capacity to six from four.

The Sidekick weapons rack is intended to give the F-35As and
F-35Cs mainly flown by the Air Force and Navy a firepower boost
without sacrificing stealth.

Lockheed Martin has developed a new weapons rack meant to give
the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter a boost in firepower without
sacrificing stealth, the defense contractor announced Wednesday.

The fifth-generation stealth fighters today can carry four
AIM-120 radar-guided air-to-air missiles, but the new weapons
rack - Sidekick - will allow the aircraft to hold an additional
Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile in each of the
aircraft's two internal weapons bays, Lockheed's F-35 test pilot
Tony "Brick" Wilson said at a media briefing,
according to Seapower Magazine.

That would raise the number of Amraams the F-35 can carry to six
from four, giving the fighter more to throw at an enemy fighter
or drone in air combat.

An F-35A Lightning II test aircraft during a live-fire test over an Air Force range in the Gulf of Mexico on June 12.U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. Michael Jackson

The F-35 stores weapons internally to maintain stealth.
Presently, a strictly internal loadout allows the
fighter to carry up to 5,700 pounds of ordnance.

Internally, the planes can carry a full set of Amraams or a
mixture of air-to-air missiles and air-to-surface Joint Direct
Attack Munitions.

The aircraft can also operate in "beast
mode," a combined internal and external loadout that allows
the F-35 to fly into battle with up to 22,000 pounds of weaponry
- but this configuration degrades the jet's stealth advantage.

Lockheed's new Sidekick weapons rack will reportedly be available
for the Air Force F-35As and Navy F-35Cs but not the Marine Corps
F-35Bs. These planes have smaller weapons bays because of a lift
fan needed for short takeoff and vertical landing, a requirement
for operations aboard US amphibious assault ships.

The F-35 program office first mentioned efforts to add capacity
for another Amraam in each weapons bay two years ago. "There's a
lot of engineering work to go with that," the program's director
explained at the time,
according to Air Force Magazine.

Speaking with reporters Wednesday, Wilson said the "extra
missiles add a little weight but are not adding extra drag." He
also said the F-35 had the ability to eventually carry hypersonic
missiles should that capability be necessary.